Cable trays, which are used to support electric cables as part of a cable management system, frequently employ the use of a U-shaped tray made of sheet metal to support the cables. The cable trays are typically assembled in sections that are attached together using bolted-on splice plates. However, the use of splice plates creates a narrow gap between the cable tray sections and results in sharp edges of sheet metal being exposed. These edges may be sharp enough to gradually strip the outer jacket of any cables that come into contact with the edges of the sheet metal. To prevent such damage to the cables, joint strips are used at the bottom of the cable tray at the junctions between the sections of the cable trays to bridge the gap.
Commonly used joint strips have four legs in an H-shape configuration, such that the joint strip overlaps the upper and lower surface of the sheet metal pieces on either side of the gap. Installation of these joint strips to the bottom of the cable tray is difficult if the cable tray has already been installed. It requires that the splice plate be removed, and adjoining sections of the cable tray be disconnected from each other and pulled far enough apart that the joint strip could be inserted between them. Maneuvering a cable tray that has already been assembled is often very difficult and laborious because the assembled section may be extremely long and already attached to the support structure.